(A) This invention relates to hand worn grip assist means, and particularly to resilient pads specifically protective of only the user's palm region; while facilitating enhanced griping action via greater coefficient of friction.
(B) Review of prior-art reveals particular interest in protecting the palm of the hand from induced skin abrasion and nerve trama when engaged in sports or work which requires one to exert a comparatively tight grip upon an object such as a baseball-bat, weightlifting-bar, bicycle handlebar, etc.; which objects tend to impose a highly concentrated pressure upon the generally unprotected inner hand surface.
Various glove designs have been resorted to which may cover all or part of the hand, although special versions related to this invention may delete covering of the fingers so as to concentrate on protecting the palm of the hand essentially.
Perhaps the best example of such related art is revealed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,754,499 (Filed- 6/87) wherein the Inventor has set forth a rather triangular kidney shaped planar pad of resilient rubber material having a nylon backing for reinforcement along with a plurality of loops formed from a separate length of similar material cut in a strip which is appropriately stitched at five intervals upon the nylon side of the pad so as to create suitable finger holds. The article is intended primarily for enhanced hand gripping action, so there is no provision for any additional manner of padding other than the relatively thin composite material itself.
Other examples of prior art pertaining to hand-pads attaching to the fingers is found in U.S. Pat. No. 3,398,951 (filed- 3/65) and U.S. Pat. No. 2,547,388 (filed- 12/48); wherein the former is a bowler's finger-pad which receives all four fingers into a commonly looped strip of resilient material similar to the above material, although this article is worn only about half-way down toward the finger-crotch region where the affixed pad portion extends transversely across between the two outer fingers. The latter example is a protective hand-pad which involves a similar series of four finger-loops in conjunction with an attached palm-pad having a hole for the protrusion of the thumb where the resilient pad wraps partily around the back of the hand and is secured by two snap-on straps.
Still other somewhat less pertinent examples are seen in the fingerless and thumbless partial glove embodiment of U.S. Pat. No. 2,845,628 (10/54), the golfers hand-grip wraping pad of U.S. Pat. No. 2,867,814 (9/56), leather sports hand-pad of U.S. Pat. No. 4,617,684 (10/86), and finger attaching gymnast's hand-grip of U.S. Pat. No. 3,381,304 (7/65); all of which serve to essentially protect the palm of the hand, albeit in a manner of simplicity unlike that resorted to by the invention now to be revealed.
This invention shall hereinafter be generally referred to as the `palm-pad`, but is presently the subject of initial manufacturing as the "Pow'rPad".sub..TM. product under auspices of the EZ-GRIP Mfg.& Mkt.Co., Div. Sports Products Consultants of San Diego, California.